The pandemic brought lots of changes to the workplace and the world in general, but these changes began long before this big shift. Media and the way people consume and react to different marketing methods is evolving at warp speed in today’s time, meaning that adapting quickly and effectively is the only way to keep afloat. The restaurant industry especially faced a lot of challenges during the pandemic in which new thinking became paramount.
IHAF supplier member, Wripple, spoke to one of our own, VP of Maverick Studios, Chris Phillips, for insider expertise on how he led Maverick Studios through tough times with new strategies to keep our brands relevant in the minds of consumers. When asked about this process, Chris said, “I saw this as an opportunity to expand how the in-house team contributes to the business, building a better future for Maverick”. Chris’ key insights for innovation include creativity, content and seamless teams.
Creativity is non-negotiable. The average person sees 6,000 to 10,000 advertisements a day, meaning your message needs to be creative enough to break through all the noise. With the pandemic, access to resources in the office was limited.
“The way we worked before the pandemic wasn’t an option,” shared Chris. “We couldn’t have simple photoshoots like we used to—we weren’t allowed. We had a problem, a project, and we had to get creative to make it happen.”
As Bill Gates famously wrote, content is king. Not only was new content required, but better, think-outside-the-box content was necessary. With the digital landscape constantly changing with new platforms and new ways to reach consumers, Chris and Maverick Studios had to up their content game, “The way content is consumed and the way customers make decisions are different now. The reach has changed significantly”. Getting the consumers’ attention above all other media is the key to success.
Seamless communication across teams translates to better products and happier clients. Chris knew this and shifted to a system that used hyper-collaboration, with a focus on unity across all project teams. Freelancers were employed to help to close the gap in client needs, and seamless communication with them was vital as well.
“Our key objective in using freelancers was to give our team the room it needed to rapidly expand and evolve their roles given the new reality we faced. Engaging specialists allowed us to manage surge capacity and be more nimble and quicker to market,”.
This seamless communication has maintained its presence in Maverick Studios even with team members who work remotely.
As for the future of Maverick Studios Chris is confident in his team. “The pandemic shined a light on what Maverick Studios can deliver. We are more integrated, and the results show it. By moving forward boldly, our future is bright. However, vigilance is still essential.” Maverick Studios is never satisfied and continues to push for more creativity and improving from previous efforts. Thanks to Chris’ guidance along the way, the future is bright for Maverick Studios.
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